PATHBASE

Common tropical infections of the liver causing fibrosis or scarring appear to a marked degree more frequently in Type As--and to a lesser extent in Type B and Type AB. Type O, which may have developed anti-A and anti-B antibodies as an early protection against these parasites, is relatively immune to them. For reasons we do not fully understand, Type As, Type Bs and Type ABs tend to have higher levels of gallstones, diseases of the bile ducts, jaundice, and cirrhosis of the liver, than do Type Os. Type As have the highest incidence.